The Cecil Whig., 1887-05-21
Vhelleople:s( 4 oIun'n
About Trees and Their Varieties.

Mr.. EDiTOR:-I write you again to
thank you tor the publication of my re-
marks on tree buCchering' and the ex-
tract from the Philadelphi Le3gsr writ
ten by Mr.. Thomas Meehan, whO as |
stated, is a recognized authority on dren-
drologY. | hope what have said will
excite at least IA passing interest with the
Intelligent few" on this subject OF
'town shade, - or that it will at least
stimulate individual inqairy on this sub
Ject. which 50 intcntly affects our comfort
during the tOrrid temperature of sum
mer. l also ask your further iudul-
gence, Mr.. Editor, on this matter
and enclose you a communication
taken from the Lcdger which has been
evoked by the extract which you so kindly
published tor me last week. | read this
''reply'' with very great pleasure as |
think all lovers of trees Will. | hope
III asking you to publish SO long
an extract you will not think me uurea-
sonable. ! may be unreasonable in my
admiration of trees, but they are such
perpetual friends Of the human race, So
contributory to the personal and domestic
comfort of man, that cannot Over-esti
mate their Importance as a factor in the
industrial, domestic aud commercial rela-
tions of life. Besides what an inuividu.
atity surrounds those noble monuments of
Coos wisdom, those sturdy oaks whose
stalwart growth deties the lightning aud
derides the storm | never am too busy
or careless enough, to pass these orna-
ments of Gods beautiful earth, without
admiring them.
From the Phjludelphio Ledger.
Mr.. EDTToR:-The recent castigation
given the ''Jree butchers by your cor
respondent was well deserved and he has
the thanks of all tree lovers for the same.
But in speaking of trees IT. NJ " seems
to condemn the whole family of naples
aud pOpiarS. With these thrown out we
have but small choice lefS for sidewalk
use aud ornament. Indeed, it would seem
we had but single one-the horse chest
nut. There's not an oak that will serve.
the elm and buttOnwood are no better;
the paper mulberry, favorite in the
-H0rus maLttcnHLts days, was tabooed long
ago.
The beautiful linden, an account of its
being such a terrible worm breeder, was
voted nuisance and cut down, while the
tall, majestic, deep-toliaged ailanthus,
tree OF heaven though it is called. is
now under the ban, and has even had acts
OF legislation passed against its life. Thus
1t would seem the horse chestnut alone
remains to us. Even this has been worm
breeder (cauSht the disease of the maple)
tor some seasons past, and is ObIcc6iOna-
BILE besides ON account of the early decay
of its foliage, as well as the uncertain life
of the tree itself. Now will rot IT. NJ"
come to our aid and tell us Just what
trees TO plant? Such as will not breed
worms, such as will not send up surface
roots TO the destruction of our pavements
and gardens, such as will not grow too
tall and thus render tree butcnariug"
seeming necessity. Come to our aid. IT.
M
HOW ThEEs ADAPT THEMSELVES TO CON-
DITIONS.
We should certainly know the charac-
ters of the trees we plant, especially those
planted on our sidewalks. Many trees
have the capacity of adapting themselves
to change of climate and position,
though by the change the character of
the tree becomes quite altered. The COM
mon magnolia (swamp sassafras) will
grow on high uplands, but when So placed
it will bloom no more. l know Of such
tree taken when small from the swamp
and planted in the upland. When l last
saw 1t it was fully sixty feet in height,
with girth i'll proportion, but it had
never lowered after being transplanted.
The arodiHm (Bald Cyprus) likes
water, naturally, but not too much, and
when it finds itself in position where it.
is likely to be drowned, 1t sends up from
it's submerged roots "spurs," " or "knees,"
a ~ -,
and sunshine, aud thus sustain the life of
the parent tree. When the tdSodium is
transplauted in the upland, or IN drier
ground, the spurs appear no more, they
are not wanted. There are some fine spec
linens of the tar0diuR1 in the Iudepend-
ence and Washington Squares, and there
are four exceedingly fine ones standing
near the fish pond, foot of the mansion,
Fairmount Park. When planted there
by Robert Norris, the locality was all
swamp, and, doubtless. the spurs" were
plenty, but the grounds were thoroughly
drained years and years ago. The trees
remain in all their conical beauty, but
the 'spurs' appear no more. In some
parts OF the far South, where the tar0dtula
is common, the young "spurs" are used
as food, when boiled and prepared some
what after the manner of asparagus.
THE PLEASURES OF KNOWLEDGE.
know not how much botany is taught
in our schools, but judging from the
sparsity of knowledge III our community
about trees in general, | should think
that branch called dendrology is not stud
led at all. | frequently hear persons of
otherwise fair education confess their
utter ignorance as to trees, that they
hardly know one from another, be il III
woods, park or orchard, unless blossom
or fruit be upon the branches.
Byron says there is pleasure in the
pathless woods There is, great pleas
ure, and it is much enhanced even by
small knowledge of trees. Some of the
most delightful walks have ever taken
have been among the wooded parts of
our beautiful Park, accompanied by
friend who could tell me the name aud
some characteristics of almost every tree
therein.
"TONGUES IN TREES"
Shakespeare speaks of tongues in trees.
Yes, tongues have they for those who
love them and listen to what they tell.
In their buds and blossoms, in their fruits
aud i'll their decay they speak to us OF
the great law OF nature, while certain
ones read to us pages of history and
poetry. The oak, with its hundreds
arms 50 strong,' tells of the Floating
bulwarks" of many nationS-ot Trafal-
gar and Lake Erie ard other scenes
where the "oak-ribbed Leviathans" were
veritable heroes. One old oak in Windsor
Park calls up William the Conqueror as
well as Sir Johu Falstan. Another in
Woodstock Park tells us of the fugitive
king who found refuge and safety amidst